Almaz Capital said Tuesday that its first-ever sale would see its stake in Qik, a Silicon Valley-based provider of mobile video conferencing software and services, go to Skype by the end of the month.
Skype announced the purchase of 100 percent of Qik at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Thursday for a reported $100 million to $150 million.
While the deal is private and Almaz Capital is not allowed to disclose information about the stake, the firm typically purchases 15 percent to 25 percent of the companies that it invests in, said Alexander Galitsky, the venture capital's managing partner.
The would allow Almaz Capital to collect $15 million to $37.5 million in the sale.
The fund, with offices in Moscow and Silicon Valley, has invested in various projects in the former Soviet Union and Silicon Valley. It was one of the first to sign up for Skolkovo, the Kremlin's planned innovation center outside Moscow, and has promised to spend $30 million on cloud computing there.
While Almaz Capital had not planned to unload the Qik stake, it received a good bid and chose to sell, Galitsky, also a member of the Skolkovo board, said by telephone.
The sale will now allow Almaz Capital to market future projects, including two planned initial public offerings in 2012, Galitsky said.
“Two of Almaz Capital's assets will see IPOs next year,” he said, without indicating which companies would go public.
He said the shares would be traded on Nasdaq.
As for Skype, the acquisition of Qik will add recording, sharing and storing capabilities to Skype’s product portfolio as well as optimize video transmission over wireless networks, the company said in a statement.
Currently, Skype allows for one-on-on video conferencing only on iPhone 3G/4G and Nokia N900 cell phones, said Lev Yakupov, marketing director at VideoPort, a video conferencing company.
Qik Service is available on more than 200 cell phones across the Android, iPhone, Symbian, Blackberry and Windows Mobile platforms.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
